Gate, McLane Forge Deal

Service agreement extends through 2010

May 03, 2005

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. -- Southeastern convenience retailer Gate Petroleum and McLane Grocery Distribution have entered into a service agreement that extends through 2010.

McLane is committed to the success of our business and has been consistently focused on meeting our needs and contributing to our growth. We appreciate their support and expertise, said Mitchell Rhodes, president of Gate Marketing.

We are excited to extend our long term relationship with Gate Petroleum. They are an industry leader and we are proud of the partnership [image-nocss] which has and will continue to generate increased sales and gross profit dollars at each Gate location, said Jim Curley, president of McLane/Suneast.

Gas stations are still Gate's core business, and it operates 150 stations with convenience stores in seven Southeast states.

It also operates eight concrete plants which manufacture precast, prestressed and hollowcore concrete products located in Florida, Alabama, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, and Texas. It owns and operates four private clubsThe Ponte Vedra Inn & Club, Epping Forest Yacht Club, The Lodge & Club and The River Club. Real estate holdings throughout the Southeast include Deerwood Park, a 1,000-acre office park in Gate's corporate home of Jacksonville, Fla., and Riverplace Tower in downtown Jacksonville.

McLane Co. Inc. provides distribution services to multiple industries throughout the United States. A wholly owned subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway Inc., McLane delivers food and nonfood products to more than 50,000 customer locations in the United States, including to operators in the convenience store, drug store, mass merchandise, wholesale club and quick-service restaurant (QSR) industries. Headquartered in Temple, Texas, the company operates 18 grocery divisions and 18 foodservice distribution centers.

Plunge in oil prices sets the stage for record margins and boost in in-store sales. Also In This Issue: Profitability skyrockets for top performers! Other channels seek to redefine convenience! The economy enters a new stage. The growing health-and-wellness trend. Fuel demand; oil's slide; multicultural momentum; and data, data, data!

Since 2003 CSP magazine has ranked No. 1 in readership and market share over all other industry publications. C-store marketers have identified CSP as the preferred magazine source for their trade marketing communications. With industry-leading, highly targeted circulation to more than 100,000 subscribers, CSP reaches the key convenience retailing decision-makers fifteen times a year.